Villas-Boas was subsequently sacked before Christmas but the Blues' new boss Roberto di Matteo remains keen on pursuing the sale.

Chelsea's hopes appeared to take a hit earlier this week when Ligue 1 side PSG made contact with Hulk's agent and suggested they would be willing to pay up to £43million, some £13m more than the Blues had opened the bidding at.

But now Hulk has revealed he would welcome a move to England over France.

The 25-year-old said: 'Chelsea are the current European champions and would please any player and I'm no exception. I'd be happy if the transfer happened.

'I leave everything in the hands of Porto. I am under contract and I have been happy at Porto for four years, where I have achieved everything.

In his heart: Hulk has enjoyed the best part of his career at Porto and insists any decision is down to the club, who he will always keep in his heart

Hulk, who has a contract to 2014, added in O Jogo: 'I'll have the club in my heart no matter what happens this summer or in any other summer.'

Roman Abramovich sees Hulk as the ideal replacement for Didier Drogba who left the club at the end of the season.

Last wekk, newspaper A Bola claims Tottenham will be contenders to sign the player if Villas-Boas is appointed the new boss at White Hart Lane, though the price tag appears to be prohibitive.

Meanwhile, another Portuguese newspaper, Diario Noticias, says the biggest stumbling block to his move to Chelsea is a dispute about who should pay his agent for his five per cent stake in Hulk, and Uruguayan club Atletico Rentistas, who own 10 per cent.